Like A Gilmore
by SometimesCreative
Summary: 19 yr old Jill's life is destroyed due to Hurricane Katrina. She ends up in Stars Hollow staying with Lorelai. Who knew there was another girl so witty and fun like the Gilmores? Enter Jess, who also has alot in common with Jill. A little AU, but worth it
1. Finding the Dragonfly

**Title:** Like A Gilmore

**Author: **QueSera87

**Rating: **M

**Summary: **After 19-year-old Jill's life is destroyed due to Hurricane Rita, in attempts to hitch hike to New Jersey to find her only living family member, she ends up in Stars Hollow. Lorelai finds that she and Jill have a lot in common and invites Jill to stay with her. Who knew there could be another fun, witty girl SO much like the Gilmore's? Enter Jess, who also finds he has a lot in common with Jill, and he wants to get to know her better. MUCH better. )

**Pairings: **Jess/Jill. Java Junkie.

**Setting: **This season. Rory is at Harvard; Luke and Lorelai are together; Jill will be staying with Lorelai; Jess comes back to town.

**Warnings: **Contains a rape attempt, adult language and sexual themes/scenes.

Comments and constructive criticism are always encouraged, but please no flaming! )

xXxXx

Finding the Dragonfly

xXxXx

With her thumb up in the air feeling rather foolish, Jill expelled a sigh of relief as an eighteen wheeler backed up and came to a slow but definite stop. She fidgeted as the large husky man from behind the wheel pushed the door open.

"Where to?" He asked.

"New Jersey," Jill responded.

"I'm headed that way...get in if you want."

Jill didn't stop to think twice about the guy. She was really tired of walking and it had gotten dark over an hour ago, so in efforts to keep moving she threw her two bags into the truck and climbed inside.

"Name's Mac."

"I'm Jill."

They drove a couple miles in silence. Jill looked out the window. In it's reflection she could see that Mac was stealing a few glances at her. He was a hard, built, grungy man. The typical truck driver appearance she concluded.

She shivered. It was cold outside. It must have been under thirty degrees.

"Running away?" Mac broke the silence.

"No. Not at all" Jill shifted

"Then what's your story?"

"Hurricane." Jill stated flatly, almost mechanically. "Hurricane Rita destroyed my house, and killed my family."

"You kidding?" Mac raised an eyebrow.

"I wish." Jill whispered, trying to ignore the hurt that came with the mentioning of it. She was not over the trauma that had forever changed her life, and she certainly did not take kindly to anyone acting like Hurricane Rita was some kind of joke.

"Hey now," Mac started in defense, "I'm sorry. That's rough. So you're a Louisiana girl?"

"No, Texas...Houston" Jill responded quietly.

"Ah. So how'd _you _escape?" Mac pressed as he eyed the girl.

Jill was very pretty. She seemed about 19 or so, and had long layered chestnut colored hair that framed her face. She had beautiful hazel eyes that seemed to have once sparkled, and a body that wasn't a stick figure like the anorexic models Hollywood was displaying on the front of magazines.

She looked good. Mac guessed she was around 5'2 and noticed her petite build with nice curves in all the right places.

"I was away at college." Jill looked back out the window. "I watched the whole disaster unleash on TV, but I had no idea the winds would actually reach my part of town. Then I got the phone call."

"Oh," Mac muttered. "So, why New Jersey?"

"I can't go back to school. Can't pay tuition. The IRS took every penny my parent's had left. Turns out Dad owed some money... I have an uncle in New Jersey. He's the only family I've got left."

Jill sighed when they passed the Connecticut border. She was getting closer.

Her eyes were getting heavy. She had walked along the highway for most of the day. It was hard to get people to pick up hitch hikers these days. It was too dangerous. She tried to blink away the sleepiness that had overwhelmed her, but failed to do so as her head rested against the window and she fell into a deep sleep.

xXxXx

Jill awoke to the silence and stillness of the truck. She no longer felt the rhythmic rattle of the pavement moving beneath her. She opened her eyes and saw Mac leaning towards her.

"Why'd we stop?" Jill jumped, growing aware that Mac was very close to her.

"It was time for a break." Mac smiled as he leaned over her.

"So we're getting out?" Jill reached for the door handle.

"Not so much," Mac replied as he grabbed her hand and forced it down. Jill heard the sound of the doors lock, and her fears were confirmed.

She was in serious trouble.

"Let go of me." Jill protested somewhat calmly as she tried to push Mac away with her free hand.

"Hey now, DON'T mess with me!" Mac threatened as he grabbed the cigarette burner from his truck and pointed it threateningly over Jill's free arm.

Jill, now in panic, tried again to push him off of her and gasped when she felt the searing pain in her arm as Mac branded her with the burner.

"It doesn't have to be like this. Come on Honey, just _relax_, and we'll have some fun..." Mac leaned forward and pressed his weight against the girl so that she couldn't really move. He let go of her arm and started to push the hem of her shirt up to her breasts.

"_Please _stop it!" Jill begged. "I..I'll give you my wallet..or, or anything, but please, " she flinched as she felt his hand find it's way under her bra, while the other made it's way down to her zipper, "STOP IT!"

"Make me," Mac grinned wickedly as he leaned down to kiss her.

Jill's protests were put to a stop when she felt Mac's lips crash against her own. His tongue forced it's way into her mouth and when she tried to scream, he just forced the kiss deeper until Jill thought she might choke.

She tried to push him off of her. The only muscle left in her body that didn't seem tied down was her right foot. She shifted and tried to position it right where she wanted. She only had one chance. Jill mustered all the power within her, and kicked as hard as she could, right into Mac's crotch.

He jumped back and grabbed his stomach in pain. "SHIT! You little bitch!"

That was Jill's only chance. She reached back and unlocked the door, kicked Mac _again _and rolled out of the truck with only one of her bags at hand. She hit the wet pavement with a painful thud. She had forgotten how high up she had been sitting. She scrambled up and started running into the forest forgetting her other bag. She had no idea where she was going and she didn't care. She just kept running like her life depended on it.

"I'LL FIND YOU, HOUSTON! YOU'LL PAY FOR THIS!" She heard Mac yell behind her.

She wasn't sure if he was chasing her or not, but the thought just made her run faster.

xXxXx

Jill kept running even though she felt like a small fire had started in her chest. The woods were dark and creepy, and she felt like anything could jump out at her at any given moment. She tripped over a tree root and tumbled to the ground. She bounced back up and noticed a small light glowing off in the distance.

She headed in that direction, growing more and more hopeful as the light grew brighter and brighter. She finally came to the back of an old Victorian building where a few cute little gas lamps were burning to set an elegant decor. She stopped to catch her breath and nearly fell over from exhaustion.

"What had just happened?" She had so many emotions running though her- confusion, exhaustion, pure terror..not to mention violation. Jill felt dirty. She tried not to think about Mac's hands. Where they had been... where they had been trying to go…

She shook the thought out of her head and walked around to the front of the building.

"The Dragonfly Inn" announced a sign that hung along the front of the building's exterior. Jill took a deep breath, pushed her hair back behind her ears, and went inside.

Michel was the first to notice the girl. She looked a mess and he doubted she was in the right place.

"Excuse me Miss, Can I help you?" he asked.

Jill jumped, not seeing him approach her. "Um, I'm not sure." she replied staring at the ground.

Lorelai was behind the counter shuffling paper work when she saw the girl and she stopped, becoming interested in the new guest. The poor thing looked scared to death and the look on her face was evidence enough that Michel was not helping.

"Michel, I'll take this one!" Lorelai smiled as she approached Jill and sent Michel a look that said, "_Go away_!"

"Fine," Michel responded, "I'll just go check on our _other_ guests," he frowned as he turned and walked hastily away.

"Welcome to the Dragonfly! Please come in!" Lorelai gushed as she ushered the girl to the counter and out of the entree way. "I apologize for Michel. He tends to give our guests a scare from time to time."

"Oh, it's ok." Jill responded weakly.

Lorelai eyed the girl curiously. She looked tired and scared, and her jeans were ripped exposing a bleeding knee. She had little luggage, only a small duffle bag. Something told her that this girl was in trouble, or perhaps running away.

"So, can I get you a room?" Lorelai offered.

"Um. thanks, but no..um. I don't have any money." Jill kept staring at the floor feeling embarrassed for even being there. "I should go."

"No. Wait!" Lorelai protested as Jill turned to leave. "We have just the place for you. Room 29. It's the last one upstairs on the right." Lorelai offered Jill the key.

"Oh thanks, but you must not have heard right, I don't have any money." Jill looked at her.

Lorelai didn't know why she was doing this. She had no idea who this girl was, or what she was like. But when she looked at her, she felt like she was looking at herself 21 years ago, and something told her that this girl really needed a place to stay.

"I heard you." Lorelai answered. "It's on the house."

"I..I can't take it." Jill said looking Lorelai in the eyes. "It's not right."

"Take it." Lorelai said with an insisting look in her eyes. "Please. If you really want to, we'll work something out later."

Jill took a deep breath and deep down, she knew she couldn't go back outside. She had no idea where she was, or where _he_ was. Mac. She needed to be around people for protection.

"Ok." Jill whispered, taking the key. "Thank you."

"Not a problem." Lorelai winked. "And by the way, my name's Lorelai. Feel free to track me down if you need anything."

"Thanks. I'm Jill." and with that, Jill turned around and walked up stairs.

xXxXx

**A/N. That's all for now. Comments would be fabulous- constructive criticism is also welcome, but please no flaming!**


	2. Mac Attack, and Lorelai Learns All

**A/N: I really appreciate the small amount of feedback I have received. It really helps me to know if I should keep posting this here. I originally started this story just for me, but as long as people are interested, I'll keep posting.**

xXxXx

Mac Attack and Lorelai Learns All

xXxXx

Jill shut the door to her room and threw herself onto the bed. She was exhausted, but there was no way she could go to sleep. Visions of her family clouded her thoughts.

She could see her home. Her room. Her cat was asleep on her bed, lying on top of her hideous plaid bed spread she picked out way back in junior high. Jamie, Jill's little sister was in the study singing terrible karaoke to Hilary Duff's "greatest hits." Her mom was downstairs asleep on the couch after a long day of teaching bratty sixth graders, and her dad was in the kitchen making some of his famous pot roast.

It was all so clear. So real. Jill's eyes filled with tears as she forced herself to push the memories away. They only upset her.

Jill got up from the bed and opened her duffle bag. She had her wallet which contained her driver's license, a Bank of America card (which had about 12 bucks left on it), an expired Starbucks card, and a coupon for a free ice cream cone at Chick-fil-a.

She also had a weeks worth of t-shirts, a spare pair of jeans, some socks and underwear, and her (now dead) cell phone. She had left the charger back at school. Most of her belongings were back at school. When Jill realized she couldn't go back for the semester, she called her roommate and asked if she would keep her things for her until she could send for them.

Jill thought about what was in her other bag that she left on the truck. The truck. She shivered just thinking about it. Clothes...the other bag had more clothes and..._oh no!_ Jill gasped, throwing her hand to her head. Her angel necklace. The angel necklace that her parents had given her for her 10th birthday was in that bag. It was the only family heirloom that she had brought with her. Her eyes brimmed with tears again as she stood up and began aimlessly pacing the room.

Meanwhile, downstairs Lorelai was arguing with Michel.

"You mean to tell me you gave that filthy girl a room when she has _no_ money?"

"Michel, don't worry about it. I'll take care of it. I bet she needed the room more than everyone else in this hotel!" Lorelai shot back.

"And this is because..."

"Michel!" Lorelai slammed her clip board down on the desk. "She looked like she was in trouble! I recognize that look. I've been there before!"

"So because the Independence Inn took pity on you, we're going follow suit and take in all pregnant runaways? I might as well make a sign. I'll hang it on the front door. "Pregnant and homeless? Want free grub and a place to crash? Come on in"!"

Lorelai groaned and rolled her eyes and walked away towards the kitchen. A slow smile spread across her face when she was out of sight. _Michel just said "grub."_

Jill stepped into the bathroom and turned on the shower. She felt dirty inside and out and was desperate to scrub away the filth. She picked up the cute little bottle of shampoo sitting on the sink. As cute and quaint as it was, Jill had really long thick hair and she knew she'd need another bottle.

She picked up the phone to call the front desk, but realized she didn't know the number. She grabbed her bag, out of paranoia of leaving her only means of money in the room alone, and she headed downstairs to find Lorelai.

Half way down the stairs she stopped as she heard a familiar voice.

"Yeah. She's about 5'2. Brown hair. Ran away from home. I miss her, ya know?"

Michel nodded and picked up Lorelai's clip board. "Yes. She's here. She came in about half an hour ago. Room 29. Last one on the right upstairs."

Lorelai walked out of the kitchen and caught the last bit of conversation.

"Michel, what's going on? You can't give out private information about our guests without their consent."

"Lorelai, this man is the girl's father. He deserves to know where she is."

"Yeah. I got my girl's bag right here. She dropped it down the road and I've been searching the area since."

Lorelai looked at him skeptically.

Mac nodded. "Well, thanks mister. I'll just go on up and get..." Mac paused as he looked up and she was there. Their eyes locked.

Jill couldn't move. She stood dumbfounded, paralyzed with fear. _How did he find me?_ Her mind raced.

Mac smiled wide "Why hey Baby! Daddy's here. Time to come home."

Lorelai saw the panicked look in Jill's eyes. Something wasn't right. This man wasn't right.

xXxXx

Nobody heard Luke enter through the kitchen door. He stood back and watched for a minute to see what was going on.

"Um, Jill Honey, your Dad's here." Lorelai broke the silence.

"He. He's not. Not..." Jill started too scared to speak. Her legs felt like jelly and she thought she might collapse.

"Aw, come on Baby. Momma and I have missed you. It's time to come home." Mac started up the stairs.

"Don't!" Jill's voice broke as he grabbed her elbow.

"Come on Baby Cakes, don't be like that." Mac sent a threatening look with his eyes that went down to the inside of his jacket pocket, and back up to Jill.

She followed his gaze, and that's when she saw it. The knife.

It must have been two inches wide and six inches long. Mac smiled as he saw the discovery cross her face. She paled, and swallowed and just shook her head no, eyes wide. Mac pulled her down the stairs, and Jill followed like a puppet. She felt numb like she couldn't control her body the way she wanted.

On the inside, she was screaming.

She managed to stop before she passed Lorelai and she shot her a desperate look that said "Help me, _please_!" Mac gave her a shove. It came off more forceful than he had intended in front of a crowd.

Lorelai took this in, and stepped forward. "Now that's enough." she snapped. "If she doesn't want to go with you, you'll just have to let her be. She'll go with you if she wants too, when she's ready."

"Oh, she's ready." Mac announced as he dropped her bag. There was the twist of Jill's arm, and a glimmer of metal as he reached to pull the knife out of his side pocket.

He just wasn't quite quick enough. Luke saw it first and without thinking, he leapt forward and punched the guy in the face.

Lorelai jumped, Michel screamed, and Jill tried to make a run for it.

Mac doubled over, swung around and grabbed her by the back of the arm. "Piece of Shit! Come here you little Bitch! I told you I would find you, and now you're going to pay for the trouble you've caused me!" he threatened as he reached for his knife again.

"Not if I can help it!" Luke shot back as he kicked Mac in the stomach and punched him in the face again.

"Luke!" Lorelai screamed as she reached out for her fiancé.

"Stay back!" Luke ordered. "I'm fine, get her out of here." He pointed to Jill.

Lorelai looked at him hesitantly. "Be careful!" she pleaded. "Come on Sweets!" she dodged around, and pulled Jill by the shoulders towards the kitchen. "Michel, call the cops! Luke, I love you! Don't get yourself killed!"

Jill made it as far as the kitchen before she passed out.

xXxXx

When she came to, things were a bit fuzzy. She blinked and made out the shape of a Hello Kitty lamp. _Where was she?_

She tried to sit up, but was overwhelmed with dizziness and crashed back down onto the couch with a moan.

"Are you awake?" Lorelai entered with a decanter and two cups of coffee. She set them on the table.

Jill jumped when she felt another person's presence and she recoiled back into the couch.

"Oh! Oh! Sorry! Didn't mean to scare you. I promise I'm not going to hurt you, okay?" Jill looked up.

"See? I brought coffee. Friends?" This made Jill smile a little. If there was anything in the world that she loved as much as life itself, it was coffee.

"Is that a smile? See we're improving here already! Coffee does wonders, does it not?" Lorelai sat on the floor and made herself comfortable with a pillow.

"Where am I?" Jill asked, as she took in her surroundings.

"My bachelor pad." Lorelai responded. "Well, actually, the living room to be exact. And you're on the couch, which I'm sure you've probably already figured out."

Jill's smile grew wider as she picked up her coffee and took a sip. "Mmmm. That's good. What blend is this?" Jill asked.

"I wouldn't know." Lorelai admitted. "It's Luke's."

"Is that a brand?" Jill sat up and flinched a bit as she realized she was sore.

"Luke? Ha! No. It's a person. Luke Danes. Or rather, your knight in shining armor that saved you tonight. But then, he's kind of my knight in shining armor too, because we're together. Engaged actually." Lorelai flashed her ring with a proud smile.

"It's beautiful." Jill rubbed her arm and for the first time, noticed the bruise that had developed there.

"Ouch. That looks pretty nasty. Do you want some ice?" Lorelai offered.

"No thanks. It hurts, but I think it will be okay...so what time it is?" Jill looked around for a clock.

"Almost two."

"AM?"

"Yes maam! I haven't stayed up this late since this year's Dance Marathon!" Lorelai wiggled her eyebrows. "But you were quite worth staying up for. Let me tell you, Stars Hollow hasn't had this much excitement since Kirk tried to win the world record for longest amount of time with your tongue frozen to a stop light, and when he finally gave up in fear of catching Hypothermia, he was stuck!"

"Like that kid in that Christmas movie?"

"YES! But only better because it was Kirk!" Lorelai laughed. "Anyway, tomorrow you're going to be the new hot gossip all over town, and I don't even know your story yet!"

"My story?" Jill played with the hem of her shirt nervously.

"Do you not want to talk about it yet?" Lorelai scooted closer and faced Jill, giving her her full attention.

"Um..." Jill searched her mind to figure out how to start. "You know what, how did I get here?" she asked realizing she still had very little idea as to what happened and what was going on.

"Okay. Fair question." Lorelai took another sip of her coffee. "After psycho-guy-with-the-knife tried to go all "Scream 1, 2, and 3" on you, Luke punched him and we ran into the kitchen where you passed out. Sookie, my cook and good friend, helped me get you to the car where we came here, to my house. Michel, the dark French guy that gave away your cover redeemed himself by dialing 911, where the cops came and arrested the previous stated macho guy, and Luke, the knight and shining armor coffee God brought all your bags, and our fix of caffeine over here." She stopped for a breath.

"Oh. Wow." Jill blinked.

"Now, I must ask," Lorelai looked at her seriously, "Did we really put your father in jail?"

Jill shook her head. "Oh no. Not at all."

"Good. I didn't think so." Lorelai saw Jill shifting uncomfortably.

"So, who was he kid? How'd you get mixed up with a crazy creep like that?"

"It's complicated." Jill frowned.

"Okay. I'm listening. Care to enlighten me a little? What brings you to Stars Hollow?"

"Stars Hollow? What state am I in?" Jill questioned.

"Oh boy. Toto, I don't think we're in Kansas anymore. You're story really _is_ complicated, huh? You're in Connecticut."

"Oh okay. That's what the sign said before I fell asleep."

"Okay sweets, you're not making a lot of sense here, so let's connect the dots and start from the beginning. I'm Lorelai. Lorelai Gilmore" Lorelai extended her hand playfully.

"And I'm Jill. Jill Anderson" She shook hands with Lorelai and propped herself up better with a pillow.

"So Jill is your real name?"

"Yep." Jill set her now empty coffee cup down on the table.

"Is that short for Jillian? Or Jilly? I once saw a Lifetime movie with a girl named Jilly in it."

Jill laughed. "No. It's just Jill."

"Okay. Good deal. So Miss Jill Anderson, what brings you to Stars Hollow, Connecticut?" Lorelai pulled out the decanter of coffee and refilled Jill's cup.

"Thanks." Jill pulled the cup closer to her and she sighed, trying to figure out where to start. "I'm from Houston..."

"Ah, you're a Texas girl?" Lorelai interrupted.

Jill smiled. "Yeah. I guess I am." She continued, "I was going to college up North while my family was back home and something really _really_terrible happened." she stopped to take a deep breath.

Lorelai tried to read her face.

"And, um...uh..."

"You got pregnant? Lorelai guessed.

"What! No! No, no, no, no!" Jill laughed nervously. "Oh no. I'm only nineteen. There's definitely not a bun in this oven!"

Lorelai laughed. "Okay. That's good to hear. Although Michel will be sad that he won't get to make the sign after all."

"The sign?" Jill was confused.

"Never mind. It doesn't matter." Lorelai smiled. "So! You're not pregnant. What did happen?"

Jill felt anxious again and returned her attention to the hem of her shirt. "Well. I'm sure you heard about Hurricane Rita?" She looked up.

"The one that ate Louisiana?"

Jill looked back down. She still didn't like it when people took the hurricanes lightly. "No. Well, yes, but the first one was Katrina. Rita hit Louisiana and the East coast of Texas."

"Ok. Rita. Got it."

"Well I was at school when Rita hit, and while I was watching updates on the news all the time, I never thought the storm would affect my part of Houston. I kind of live, or lived," she corrected herself, "in the suburbs, you see, and they were way out of the way from where the storm was projected to hit."

"Uh-huh." Lorelai took another sip of coffee, predicting what was coming.

"Well, the storm hit, and the winds were strong enough to wipe out my entire neighborhood." Jill's voice cracked as tears snuck up on her and slowly slid down her cheek. "My house was blown apart to pieces. My family didn't evacuate."

"So they..?" Lorelai looked at the girl, hopeful that her family made it okay.

"There were no survivors." Jill concluded as she rapidly paled.

"Oh my God." Lorelai closed her eyes, trying to digest this information. When she opened them, she took Jill's hand and squeezed it. Then she got up, leaned over and hugged her.

They stayed there like that for a minute, holding each other until Jill calmed down and pulled back.

"I'm sorry." Jill whispered.

"For what!" Lorelai asked exasperated.

"For causing you trouble at your Inn." Jill wiped her eyes.

"Oh Honey, no!" Lorelai took Jill lightly by the shoulders. "What happened was not your fault! You cannot take the blame for a psycho man barging into a public place trying to hurt people!"

"But he wouldn't have come if it wasn't for me." Jill sniffed. "You see, after the hurricane, I couldn't go back to school. The cash my parents had left was taken by the IRS..."

"Stupid government," Lorelai butted in.

"Yeah, I guess Dad owed money. Well the only other family member I have left is a distant uncle that lives in Jersey. So I used what cash I had left to take a few buses as far as I could get, and then I started hitch hiking. That's how I met Mac."

"Mac?" Lorelai refilled her own cup of coffee and snuggled tight against the couch.

"The psycho-guy-with-the-knife?" Jill clarified.

"Oh. Ah, Mac." Lorelai nodded for her to continue.

"Well. A little outside of the Connecticut border, Mac picked me up in his eighteen wheeler and everything was fine. He was nice to me. Then I fell asleep."

"Right. The "you reading a sign before you fell asleep" comment is making sense now. "

"Yeah. Well, then I woke up when I realized the truck was no longer moving." Jill fumbled with her hem some more as she blushed and stared at the couch.

"Okay. You woke up. Then what happened?" Lorelai saw the expression and color of Jill's face, and somehow knew what she was going to say. But she needed to hear her say it first. "Jill..." She started softly, "Did Mac..._do_ something to you?"

Jill froze. Then she nodded. The tears were coming back.

"Did he _touch_ you?" Lorelai pressed gently, not really wanting to hear the answer.

"Um. Yeah." Jill mumbled.

_That Bastard!_ Lorelai thought to herself. "How far?" she asked, looking up into Jill's eyes. "How far did he go?"

Jill took a deep breath. "He made his way into my bra. And into my pants..." she felt the tears beginning to spill from her eyes again.

"Oh Honey." Lorelai gently pushed Jill's hair out of her face. "Did he rape you?" she finally questioned, barely above a whisper.

"No." Jill answered. "But he tried too. He almost..." and then she lost it again.

_Thank God _Lorelai thought, and she leaned forward and hugged the poor girl again.

"Okay. It's going to be okay" Lorelai promised as she rubbed Jill's back encouragingly.

"I hope so." Jill responded meekly. "God I hope so."

xXxXx

**A/N: Please keep the feedback coming. I really appreciate it. Jess fans, don't fret. Jess is coming up! REALLY soon, I promise!**


	3. Welcome to Stars Hollow

**A/N: Thank you SO much to all those who have left reviews. I was really worried about posting this story since it had a new character in it, but you all have been really great and it's nice to know that some of you really like it! As long as people are interested, I'll keep posting!**

xXxXx

Welcome to Stars Hollow

xXxXx

Jill rolled over and tried to shield the sun from her eyes. She groaned and threw her pillow over her head hoping that would do the trick. _Sun bad._ She thought. Five minutes later she gave up and opened her eyes, blinking rapidly to grow accustomed to the brightness.

"Sun very bad," she grumbled out loud as she sat up on the couch. It took her a moment to remember where she was. Then it all came back to her.

Lorelai was stretched out asleep on the floor. She had fallen asleep there the previous night, and since then managed to get tangled up in her blankets. Her pillow was also on top of her head.

_Ha. I guess I'm not the only one annoyed by the sun_, Jill thought. She looked around the room. A clock read 8:00. _Geez it's early! _Jill was not a morning person. She could sleep all day if time allowed it.

She was wondering whether or not to wake Lorelai, just as the older woman groaned and pounded the pillow with her fist.

"Make it go awaaaaay!"

"Huh?" Jill looked at her, a bit amused.

"The sun. Make it go awaaaay!" Lorelai moaned.

"I wish I had the power to do that," Jill admitted. "Were you supposed to be at work today?" She hoped Lorelai hadn't overslept on account of her being there.

"Huh?" Lorelai didn't move out from under the pillow.

"Your job? At the Inn? You aren't late are you? It's 8:00."

At this Lorelai rolled over. "8:00? Rorrrry!"

Jill shifted, not sure what to do. "Uh. Not Rory. Jill."

"Jill?" Lorelai sat up and blinked sleepily. "Oh. Jill!" She rubbed her eyes."Woah. That was trippy...what are you doing up? It's early."She stayed still for a few moments, waking up and collecting her thoughts. "Hmmm, nope. I don't have work today. With all of last night's excitement Michel said he would cover for me today and tomorr-"

She was interrupted by a rapid knocking at the door.

"Unless that's Luke, bringing coffee, they'd better have a death wish!" Lorelai mumbled as she slowly got up and stumbled to the door.

"Lorelai Doll! It's me, open up!" came a loud voice that she really didn't want to hear.

"Oh boy. Here we go!" Lorelai warned. "Quick. Go upstairs. There's a bathroom where you can freshen up. Hurry!"

Jill scrambled off the couch and hurried up the stairs, curious as to who she was hiding from. As soon as she was out of sight, Lorelai opened the door.

"Why hello Babette! Nice to see you at 8:00 in the morning. Nice and _early_. At _8:00_. In the m_orning_." Lorelai raised her eyebrows sarcastically.

"Sorry Doll, I know you're usually sleeping at this hour if you're not at the Dragonfly, but with all the excitement going on, I _knew_ you couldn't be in bed today!"

"I couldn't?" Lorelai sighed.

"So is it true?" Babette let herself into the entree way and hung her coat up with her hat. "Was there really almost a murder at the Inn? _You're_ Inn? In _Stars Hollow_! I heard some macho guy just barged right in and tried to stab people, and then Luke saved the day and beat him to a pulp, after nearly being stabbed himself, while Michel cried, and you ran off with that pregnant runaway!"

"Michel _cried_? I missed it!" Lorelai whined. "But you should have heard his scream," she added grinning evilly.

"So the girl! Where is she? Is she here? Kind of brings back memories from the old days doesn't it Doll?" Babette started into the living room.

"Babette, calm down. Luke is fine. The knife involved never left the guy's pocket. Jill is not a runaway and she's most definitely not pregnant. She doesn't even look pregnant! The psycho trucker is in jail, and everything is fine now." Lorelai followed her into the kitchen. Babette was obviously looking for something, or someone to be exact.

"Oh Honey, come on! I know there's more than that! Well, where is she? Jill's her name? Where's Jill now?"

"Upstairs," Lorelai replied, blocking the exit from the kitchen. "She just woke up. Give her time to freshen up. She's still really mixed up. She shouldn't have to see anyone until she's ready."

"Lorelai! I'm dying here! Everyone in town wants to know about the mystery girl! There has to be something interesting about her! You sure she's not pregnant?"

"Yes, Babette. I'm sure."

"Because some girls can hide it very well."

Lorelai rolled her eyes. "She's _fine_ Babette! She just needs _time_ to get over what she's been though!" She walked to the hat stand and gathered Babette's coat and hat.

Babette frowned, realizing Lorelai wasn't going to let up. "Ok Doll. Just promise me that as soon as the girl is out and about and ready to see people, you'll introduce her to me ASAP?"

"Sure Babette," Lorelai nodded handing over her things. "As soon as Jill's ready to see people, you'll meet her."

"Thanks Toots, and don't let her meet Patty before she gets to meets me!" Babette finished as the front door closed behind her. She was finally gone.

Lorelai sighed. "You can come out now! It's safe!"

Jill popped her head out from around the corner, still upstairs. "Okay good. Thanks for the heads up. That sounded pretty crazy."

"Ah, the people in this town you have yet to meet!" Lorelai shook her head.

Jill glanced around from above. "Hey Lorelai, do you know what happened to my things?"

"Oh! Sorry!" Lorelai motioned across the hall. "They're down here in Rory's room."

Jill came down and followed, finding her bags. "So Rory is..."

"My daughter," Lorelai finished.

"And she goes to Yale I take it?" Jill questioned, sitting on the bed noting all the Yale memorabilia on the walls.

"Yep!" Lorelai replied, joining her."It's like Yale threw up in here. Rory's a junior now. She just turned 21."

"Oh okay," Jill responded, realizing how Lorelai must have had her daughter pretty young.

"I had her when I was sixteen," Lorelai admitted, confirming her thoughts. "I left home just after she was born and ended up working here in Stars Hollow at the Independence Inn. It was rough, but I wouldn't go back and change anything for the world." She smiled."Rory's everything to me."

"Does that have anything to do with why you gave me the room at the Dragonfly?" Jill questioned, making the connection.

"Yep. I could tell you really needed it, and it was like looking into a mirror 21 years ago...only you didn't have stretchmarks."

They laughed. Lorelai turned to Jill, facing her. "For some reason, I saw a lot of myself in you kiddo."

There was a brief pause as they let the moment sink in.

"Thanks..." Jill looked her in the eyes, breaking the silence. "For doing that."

"Not a problem Babe," Lorelai smiled. "Now waddaya say we get dressed and prettied up, and then we can go to Luke's for coffee and breakfast?"

"Sounds good to me," Jill agreed.

Lorelai left, closing the door behind her. Jill stayed on the bed and picked up her bags. She opened the one she had left on the truck. She wondered if anything was missing.

Her clothes were all there, and tucked in the bottom of an inside-out dirty sock,she found her angel necklace.

Smiling, she put it on. After adjusting the angel so that it was just right, she held it for a minute. She closed her eyes and for a moment- just a moment she could see her family again, smiling together the way they used to. The way they were supposed to… still.

Jill opened her eyes and picked up her bags. She needed a shower very, _very_ badly.

xXxXx

After both girls were dressed and cute, they grabbed their coats and headed to Luke's.

"It's going to snow again soon," Lorelai foretold, as she kicked a leaf down the sidewalk.

"Really?" Jill turned her head, interested."Did you check the weather this morning?"

"No. I can smell it." Lorelai revealed, grinning. She loved her special talent of depicting the scent of snow.

"In Houston, it never snows. I think it snowed once for about ten minutes when I was in 5th grade. It melted as soon as it hit the ground, but all the kids on the street were running around screaming like it was a blizzard." Jill laughed. "I used to love the scent of the inside of our freezer because when the freezer fan blew against the ice trays, it smelt like how I thought snow would smell."

"You might have the gift," Lorelai admitted.

"With our lack of snow, I doubt it!" Jill stopped in front of the gazebo.

"This town is so cute!"she annouced, scanning the area. "I always wanted to live in a smaller town. Houston was great with all of its amenities and having a Starbucks on every corner, but I always wanted the sense of safety and community that comes with living in a small town."

Lorelai shrugged. "It's Stars Hollow. It has its perks and its quirks. Many of which you'll be seeing the second we walk into Luke's"

"This may sound really cheesy," Jill started, "but I've always wanted to be in a small town around Christmas time. When I was little, I'd watch those Lifetime movies that would take place in small towns and someone would donate a town Christmas tree. Then there would be an official tree lighting, and the whole town would come out and sing Christmas Carols and drink hot chocolate. Then someone would have the honor of flipping the switch...I always wanted that." Jill shook her head, surprised she admitted the fantasy out loud.

Lorelai chuckled. It was funny to hear how closely the teen described Stars Hollow. "We're not quite up to par with Lifetime, but we do have a town tree, and millions of other little festivals that will let you participate in embarrassing functions. All of which are a "must-see"," she confessed.

They stopped as they reached Luke's corner. The entire town appeared to be crowded inside, awaiting their arrival.

"Oh, wow. This place is busy. Luke must get great business," Jill observed.

Lorelai shook her head. "It's not always like this. They knew we were coming."

"They?" Jill repeated.

"Babette, Patty, Taylor, Kirk...the town."

"Oh. Okay." Jill replied, growing a little nervous.

"Are you ready for this?" Lorelai turned and asked her. "We don't have to go in."

"LORELAI!" Babette yelled out the door, gesturing for them to come over. "They're here!" she notified the rest of the crowd.

"My offer still stands," Lorelai reminded the shifting girl, who seemed a bit hesitant.

Standing up straighter and pushing her hair back behind her ears, Jill finally smiled.

"Are you kidding? The coffee's in there!"

Lorelai leaned over and patted her on the back. "Thata girl! I knew I liked you!"

The two linked arms and walked inside.

"This diner's not meant to hold the entire freakin' town! At least not at once! Taylor, isn't this against a fire code or something? Get these people out of here!" Luke was throwing a fit, going into meltdown which made Lorelai laugh.

"Hey Sweetie." She gave him a kiss and plopped down at the counter, gesturing for Jill to sit next to her.

"TAYLOR! I'm serious! There are more people in this room then there are chairs and tables, and yet you're not telling me this is against some kind of rule? ANY rule? What are you're stupid rules good for!"

"Luke, it's not my fault everyone wanted to enjoy your business this morning. Now you aren't being a very nice host, not to mention a good example for our new guest." Taylor scooted his way to Jill's seat.

"Hi. I'm Taylor Doose, town mayor!" he started, shaking Jill's hand. "We are very pleased to have you in Stars Hollow! If you have any questions of any kind, or would like a designated tour of the area, please let me know and I'll be happy to arrange anything you need!"

"Enough with the welcoming Taylor, you'll scare her," Lorelai warned. "And it's Stars Hollow. She doesn't need a tour. She just saw the whole town walking from my place to Luke's!"

"Lorelai, _please_! You are not being very considerate of the needs of our new guest!"

"Um. Thank you Mr. Doose," Jill spoke up. "Actually, all I need right now is a cup of coffee."

Luke motioned to Lorelai. "She sounds just like you!"

Lorelai smiled. "I taught her well."

"Luke, you heard our guest! Give her a nice large cup of coffee, on me!" Taylor requested.

"I can't give her coffee on you, Taylor because it's on the house!" Luke responded as he slid two full cups towards the girls.

"Luke, it's not like we ever pay anyway." Lorelai reminded him.

"Shhhh!" He shot her a look. "That's because you'll be family…soon," he covered.

"Aw, you've considered us family all these years? Love you Lukie!" Lorelai winked at him.

"Lorelai, please don't call me that…at least not in front of the entire town." Luke whispered, growing embarrassed.

Kirk appeared out of the crowd and came forward. "Um excuse me, Lorelai?"

She whipped around with her coffee at hand. "Yes Kirk?"

"It's come to my attention that you might be in need of higher security at the Dragonfly Inn? You know, so that something like _this_ doesn't happen again? I wanted you to know that I am trained in Karate, Judo, various types of Kung-fu, and I have my brown belt in Tae Quon Do. I'd be more than happy to offer you my protective services. And because you and I have been such good friends for so many years, I'd be willing to work 15 percent off from my normal charges. We could work out an agreement right here, or we can arrange to meet sometime else and work out the contract later."

"Uh, thanks Kirk." Lorelai took a sip of her coffee. "But you know what? I don't think we really need your services at this time….but you never know. If I change my mind I'll be sure to give you a call!"

Kirk nodded in understanding. "I see. Well, if you change your mind, here's my card." With that, he turned and left the building.

"Finally! One less body in here!" Luke announced, throwing his hands up in the air.

Babette and Patty were just about to make their way over when the bell rang, and all attention turned back to the door.

"Kirk! What is it you don't understand about the concept "no"? Lorelai does not need your services right now!" Luke turned around and stopped.

The entire diner grew quiet.

Jill looked over and saw a guy standing in the doorway. He looked about her age, maybe a bit older. There was something kind of fascinating about his appearance. He had a hard look with an edge, like he didn't give a damn about the world. It was different, yet attractive… at least to Jill it was.

xXxXx

"Jess?" Luke was the first one to speak.

"Are we having a party?" Jess asked and he stepped in and let the door slam behind him.

"What are you doing here?" his uncle inquired, rubbing his hands nervously with a towel.

"I decided I wanted to come back." Jess stared at him.

"Why?" Luke threw the towel behind him. He shot Lorelai a look for support. He was growing even more distressed.

"I have my reasons," Jess smirked.

"For how long?" Luke looked up at him, trying to read beyond his sarcastic expressions.

"Don't know," Jess muttered. "A while?" He shoved his hands into his pockets.

Miss Patty stood up. "Well, look at all the excitement in here! This is almost better than the time Judy Garland told me she liked my act at the Gray Cave Comedy Club, and then we drank wine together and threw peanuts at the next girl performer, who actually turned out to be a _man_!."

"Quiet Doll Face! This is getting good!" Babette piped in.

Luke turned to Jess. "You," he pointed, "Upstairs! Lorelai and Jill, stay put. _Everyone else_, OUT!"

"_Ha-ha-we're-the-favorites_!" Lorelai sang softly where only Jill could hear.

"But Luke, you can't kick out potential paying customers," Taylor started to protest.

"TAYLOR, _OUT_!" Luke shouted. "I am a business owner and I can open and close my business as I so choose, and as of right now, we are _closed_!"

It took a few seconds of silence and stares, but eventually after a few moans and groans, people gave in and started filing out of the diner.

"We'll be taking this up at the next town meeting!" Taylor threatened, as Luke pointed him towards the door.

When the last person emptied the diner, Luke flipped his sign to display "closed" to the outside.

Lorelai tried to sound like Sandra Bullock in Miss Congeniality as she chanted, "_You think we're preeeetty! You think we're funnnny! You want to seeerve us! Love us and_. Okay wait," she paused, messing up her song. "_Kisssss me, and then you'll marrrry me_!" She stuck out her tongue playfully. "Sorry kid, I had to kick you out of the song. The rest didn't apply to you."

"That's okay. Definately understandable." Jill nodded.

Luke turned back to the caffiholics. "Sorry about that. So, what would you two like for breakfast?" he asked pulling out his notepad.

"Ummm chocolate chip pancakes with a side of bacon and hash browns. No eggs!" Lorelai ordered.

"That sounds good. I'll have the same." Jill consented, placing down her now empty coffee cup.

Luke reached over and picked up the whole pot, placing it in front of them.

"Here. Help yourselves. I'll be right back." He turned to go upstairs when he saw that Jess had already made his way back down. "I thought I told you to stay upstairs," Luke mumbled to his nephew.

"You told me "upstairs." Not to stay upstairs, or even _go_ upstairs," Jess snapped back. "Anyway, I'm not going to waste my time if you don't want me here. Just say so. Say the word, and I'll go." He started towards the door.

"Jess." His nephew stopped. "You can stay." Luke rubbed his head. "I heard good things about what you've been doing…you wrote a book?"

Jess turned around. "Yeah. I did. What's it to you?" He stared at his uncle. "I heard you got engaged. It's about time," he mocked, rolling his eyes. "Oh, congratulations by the way" he directed towards Lorelai.

"Thanks Jess!" She took a sip of her newly refilled coffee.

For the first time, Jess noticed the other girl sitting at the counter, who had been watching him intently. She looked at him, and he was attracted to the greenish-brown tint to her hazel eyes. They were pretty.

She was pretty. He had to admit that.

She wore a vintage 1989 Dolly Parton World Tour shirt with dark blue jeans that elongated her legs. She topped the outfit off with black hooker boots that looked like they came out of Lorelai's closet, and a single black hair clip that pulled back half of her hair.

"Dolly Parton, huh?" he asked her.

All attention was turned towards Jill. "Oh, yeah," she started, surprised that the guy acknowledged her. "She's a favorite of mine. I really like how she's basically white trash with her crazy blonde wigs, gaudy make-up, and multiple plastic surgeries, yet she laughs about it all the time and admits to it all being fake. She seems truly happy with who she is." Jill stopped for a second. "Plus she has some great music, with a personality to go with it."

"That's not all she's got." Jess shot back, eyebrows raised.

"Jess…" Luke warned.

Jess and Jill both smiled. Their eyes met, and they briefly shared a moment.

Lorelai barley caught it and narrowed her eyes, curious as to what Jess was thinking. Although he had turned his life around remarkably, he was still not at the top of her "favorites" list.

She allowed a slow smile to creep across her face. "Plus," she turned and directed at Luke, "Have you seen The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas?"

"It's a_ classic!_" she and Jill stated at the same time.

"_It's just a little bitty pissant country place, aint nothing much to see!" _Lorelai began to sing, "_No drinkin' aloud! We get a nice quiet crowd, plain as you and me!"_

Jill picked up the next line, "_It's just a piddly squattin' old town country place. Nuthin' too high told."_ She gave Lorelai her cue.

_"Just lots of good will, and maybe one small thrill, but there's nuthin DIRTY goin' onnnn!"_ they finished together.

Jess stood with his mouth half open, amused.

Luke shook his head, bewildered as usual when it game to his fiance'.

"Movie night later?" Lorelai suggested.

"Most definitely!" Jill agreed.

"Well Luke, I think we'll take our breakfast to go. Jill and I have a lot to figure out today." Lorelai picked up their coats. "And it looks like you do too," she added, nudging her head towards Jess.

Luke placed their food in a bag and dumped the rest of the coffee in "to-go" cups. "Okay. Not a problem. Take these with you." He leaned over, handing them the coffee.

"You're my hero!" Lorelai threw her arms around him and gave him a small peck on the lips.

"Thanks Luke, this is great." Jill put on her coat. "And…" she took a deep breath, "I never did get to thank you for last night. So, thank you. Really." She looked at him.

"What happened last night?" Jess crossed his legs and made himself comfortable against the wall.

"You don't have to thank me for anything." Luke smiled back at her. "Take care of her Lorelai." He kissed his fiancé again.

"Mmmm I'll do my best!" She winked at him seductively.

"Uh, what's going on here? This is getting kind of creepy!" Jess stood up from the wall.

"It's called, you're going to have an Aunt Lorelai!" Luke stated matter-of-factly as he kissed Lorelai again.

"You two get a room!" Jess yelled covering his eyes. "Geeezzz!"

Jill hopped down from the counter. "Uh, I'll be waiting outside…whenever you're ready..."

Lorelai laughed. "Sorry Hun. I'm coming. Welcome back to Stars Hollow, Jess!"

The two girls exited, happy to have their caffeine fix for the day.

"Who was that?" Jess turned to his uncle.

"Who?"

Jess shot him a look.

"Jill? Oh. That was Jill." Luke picked up a rag and started cleaning up.

"Gee thanks. That helps." Jess muttered sarcastically as he headed back up stairs to unpack his things.

xXxXx

**A/N: Yay! Jess was finally introduced! I promise the next chapter gets juicer with more serious conversations. Please keep the reviews coming if you're happy. Positive reinforcement is always a fabulous thing!**


	4. Getting Checked Out

**A/N: Sorry it took longer for this to get posted! My Birthday's today and I've had a lot going on.**

xXxXx

Getting Checked Out

xXxXx

The diner door shut behind them, and the two girls paused for a moment on the steps.

"Sooooo," Lorelai started.

"That was the town?" Jill raised her eyebrows.

"That was the town" Lorelai confirmed. "Congratulations kid. You made it through round one of the Stars Hollow Interrogation Fest!"

Jill laughed. "That was definitely interesting! Mr. Doose gav-"

"Taylor?" Lorelai cut her off. "Taylor." She repeated again. "Don't call him Mr. Doose, it give me the creeps." She shuttered.

"Ok, sorry." Jill rolled her eyes. "_Taylor_," she corrected, "gave quite an impression…but then, so did Kirk."

"You think that was something? Just wait until you come to one of our town meetings!"

"Sound's exciting" Jill admitted. "I can't believe you didn't take Kirk up on his _services_," she joked, emphasizing the last word.

"Ooh dirty!" Lorelai squealed.

"So, where to next?" Jill looked around.

"Uhhh I'm not sure." Lorelai stopped at the corner. "It's still early. Do you want to go back to the house, or would you rather talk and walk around town?"

"Talk and walk sounds good to me" Jill decided.

The two crossed the street and headed back towards the gazebo.

"You really have no idea how lucky you are that Babette and Patty didn't have the chance to get to you!" Lorelai wagged her finger knowingly.

"Yeah, after hearing Babette this morning, I'll agree with that hands down!"

They subconsciously followed the side walk and sat down at the nearest bench to start their picnic.

"So…." Lorelai began again, sipping her coffee, "Whadya think of Jess?" She shot Jill a sly smile.

"He seemed nice," Jill responded casually, staring across the street.

"Just nice huh?" Lorelai nudged the younger girl playfully with her elbow. "Is that all?"

"I just met him!" Jill protested, as she started getting out their breakfast.

Lorelai had an evil glint in her eye."Yeah ya did!"she exclaimed with a knowing look on her face.

"What?" Jill leaned over. "Why are you giving me that look?"

"What look?" Lorelai asked innocently, as she cut her pancakes.

"The 'I wouldn't be surprised if you two _got-it-on'_ look!"

"Ah ha!" the older woman jumped, pointing her plastic knife accusingly at Jill, "So there IS something!" she pursed her lips into a smirk.

"I didn't say that! _You_ did!" Jill crossed her arms, growing frustrated that she was caught.

"But I was _riiiight,_" Lorelai sang, swinging her legs playfully.

Jill rolled her eyes. "You're such a tease!"

Lorelai dropped her jaw. "_I'm_ the tease?" She dramatically threw her hand over her chest acting hurt. "_Oh Jess!_" she mimicked in her Bambi McBimbo voice. "_Yes, I like Dolly Parton, but not nearly as much as I like yooouuu!_"

"I did NOT say that!" Jill shot back defensively, shoving pancake in her mouth.

"Well not exactly," Lorelai took another sip of her coffee, "But it was close. That was very attractive by the way," she referred to Jill's method of pancake stuffage.

"Thanks, I try," Jill responded with her mouth still full.

The two were quiet for a few minutes, as they attacked their breakfast.

"It's nice to know someone else can eat like a Gilmore," Lorelai joked.

"It's nice to know someone else can eat like _me_," Jill responded, raising her eyebrows.

When the to-go boxes were finally empty, Jill got out a napkin and wiped her mouth.

"So…was it really that obvious?" she finally questioned.

"Eh..." Lorelai sighed, "No. Not to worry Babe!" she patted Jill's leg. "I only noticed because I don't trust that kid and I tend to watch him like a hawk..._and_," she added, "I definitely saw him check you out!"

"WHAT?" Jill shot forward, eyes wide. "He did not!"

"He did too!" Lorelai nodded, standing up to throw away their trash.

"When!" Jill asked, still flabbergasted. She jumped up and followed after the other woman.

"Right after he congratulated me on my engagement!"

"Wow." Jill stopped. "That's a first."

"Oh come on!" Lorelai turned to her. "Don't tell me you haven't noticed guys checking you out before! You're perfectly gorgeous."

"I've noticed," Jill admitted, "But it's usually old, creepy guys like Mac." Jill flinched at the mentioning of his name. "I never seem to get the hott ones."

"Well, you did this time kid." Lorelai stopped as a new thought came to her attention.

"Hey Hun..." She put her arm around Jill's shoulder encouragingly, "Speaking of He-who-must-not-be-named, do you think we should maybe get you checked out? You know…make sure he didn't do any serious damage?"

Jill tensed, only half-way understanding what she was talking about. "You mean like, mentally? Or physically? I'm not crazy, I promise."

"I know you're not kid," Lorelai gave her a comforting squeeze. "I meant more of the latter actually," she made eye contact with the younger girl.

"Um. I'd rather not, really." Jill bit her lip. "I mean, he never got the chance to…_you know_…" she trialed off.

Lorelai looked at her with a motherly concern. "Yeah. I know Hun, but I'm still not sure we shouldn't have a professional look at you."

Jill rubbed her eyes and blinked. She felt the familiar feeling of discomfort resurface as she realized she forgot to mention something. She hesitantly turned to Lorelai.

"There's something that I didn't show you," she muttered softly, as she pulled up the sleeve on her t-shirt. "This," she twisted her arm revealing the wound from the cigarette burner.

Lorelai gasped. "Oh my gosh! Jill,what did he _do?_!" She took Jill's arm and turned it gently. "Why didn't you show me this before?"

"Cigarette burner." Jill replied. "I'm sorry." She looked down guiltily. "With everything going on, I honestly forgot all about it."

"Does it hurt?" Lorelai asked, lightly running her fingers over it.

"Only when I think about it." Jill confessed.

"Okay, that's it!" Lorelai stated sternly. "The talk and walk is over. We're taking you to the doctor to get checked out."

"But…" Jill began.

"I'm sorry, Hun. As any concerned mother would do, I'm going to have to pull the mom card on this one!" Lorelai took hand of the reluctant girl and started pulling her back towards the house.

Jill was quiet. She _really_ didn't want to go to the doctor's. Her first concern was that she had no idea what they would be examining, and she was afraid the whole experience would end up painful or embarrassing. Her second concern was that she had a huge irrational fear of doctors and medical places in general.

When she was little, Jill was diagnosed with a bad case of pneumonia that put her in the hospital the week before her seventh birthday. When the nurses came to put her IV in, her veins kept collapsing and she grew very sensitive to the needles. When her right arm didn't comply, they stuck her left arm. When the left arm failed, they moved back to the right wrist. After her veins continued to collapse, they _finally_ found a stable source in her left wrist.

They stuck her over fifteen times. Jill knew because she counted, and grew so uncomfortable that she started trying to get away from the nurses. They held her down and covered her eyes, so that she couldn't move or see. Jill remembered screaming "You guys are killing me!" and the nurses laughed, thinking she was cute.

The whole experience was not so cute to Jill. It was one of the most traumatic experiences of her life, and she had been petrified of needles and doctors ever since.

"Um Lorelai," Jill mumbled as they approached the house.

"Yeah Hun?" Lorelai listened. When Jill didn't say anything, she stopped and looked at the girl, acknowledging something was wrong. "Hey, what is it?" she asked seriously as she placed her hand on Jill's shoulder.

Jill's eyes watered and she was afraid that if she tried to talk, she would lose it.

Lorelai noted this and pulled Jill into the Jeep, out of the public.

"Okay." She leaned over to the girl. "It's okay to cry," she said gently as she wiped Jill's hair away from her eyes.

"Lorelai," Jill started again…"I'm scared," she admitted, barely above a whisper.

"Oh, Honey! It's okay to be scared!" Lorelai assured her, pulling her into a hug.

When she finally let go, she lifted Jill's chin. "Everything's going to be fine, I _promise_!"

Jill only sniffed and nodded, as Lorelai started the car, and headed down the road to Hartford.

xXxXx

An hour later, they entered the medical center. Jill took a seat in the waiting room as Lorelai went up to the front desk to sign her in. After thirty minutes of annoying paper work, a nurse finally called her name. Jill tried to stand up, but failed as she was overcome with dizziness due to her rising fear.

"Hey." Lorelai put her hand on Jill's back. "Everything's going to be okay. If you want, I'll go with you, and stay by your side the entire time."

Jill nodded, "Would you, please?"

"Of course," Lorelai stood up, and they followed the nurse to the examining room.

"How will I pay for this?" Jill questioned, suddenly remembering that she had no money.

"Don't worry about it," Lorelai replied hastily.

The nurse opened a drawer and pulled out a paper gown. She handed it to Jill and told her to change, and then she left to get the doctor.

"Great." Jill muttered when the door closed. "Everyone looks so great in paper!"

"Yeah," Lorelai piped in, "Is it short enough to flash people?"

Jill looked at her, confused at her enthusiasm.

"Didn't you hear? Exposing your bare butt in public is the new hott look! That chick on Project Runway did it!"

Jill shook her head. "Well, once Alyson Hannigan wore a paper dress on the David Letterman Show," she added, trying to play along.

"Thata girl! Oh, and I loved her on Buffy!" Lorelai offered a high-five, which Jill half-heartedly accepted.

After clothes were removed and the oh-so-stylish paper attire was in tact, the doctor came in and introduced himself.

He asked Jill's account of what had happened to her and he listened, making markings on his clipboard as she retold her story.

"I see," he stated when she had finished. "Well, the first thing I'd like to do is take a look at that burn. Then I'd like to check for bruises, and collect a pap smear to make sure no tissue was damaged."

Lorelai saw the instant panic cross Jill's face and decided to come to the rescue.

"Um, excuse me Doctor, but I don't believe the thorough womanly groping would really be necessary this time around. As you heard from her," Lorelai stopped and gestured to Jill. "Mac didn't actually get the chance to…get… uh, you know…_into_ her," she finished awkwardly.

Jill almost choked when she heard the term "womanly groping."

The doctor didn't seem amused. He furrowed his brow and gave Jill a hard look. "And you _know _that this is all 100 percent correct?"

"Jill wouldn't lie" Lorelai answered for her. She really hadn't known the teen for very long, but for some reason she felt like she could completely trust her, and so far she had no reason not to.

The doctor looked annoyed. "Ms. Gilmore, I was talking to the patient." He glanced back at Jill.

"Uh, I'm sure." Jill confirmed, trying her best not to look as freaked out as she felt. She shot a look of thanks to Lorelai, who winked and smiled back in response.

"Okay then," the doctor continued, "Then we'll take a look at that burn, check for bruises, and I'd like to take a blood sample to make sure there are no other problems."

"That's fine" Lorelai nodded.

Jill stopped breathing when she heard the words "Blood sample." She couldn't help shaking as the doctor looked at her arm.

"The burn isn't too bad," the doctor examined. "It's a second degree burn, so I'm going to prescribe some medicated ointment for you to rub on it every couple of hours. It should keep the pain down and speed up the healing process." He ran his hand over it rather roughly, causing Jill to jump. "However, with the skin tissue damage, you might end up with a nasty scar," he warned.

"I've got Neosporin!" Lorelai announced.

"She can try using that to help refrain from scarring." He responded, turning his attention back to Jill. He helped her lay back onto the table, and he slowly lifted up her paper covering.

Jill was feeling _really _thankful that she had been allowed to keep on her bra and underwear.

As the doctor's hands started wandering, searching for sensitive areas, Jill flinched a little, sometimes in pain, and other times out of awkward discomfort. Lorelai got up and moved next to her, so she could hold her hand.

The doctor looked at her like she was in the way, but Lorelai didn't care. When he was done, he smoothed the paper gown back over the teen and made more marks on his clip board.

"One last question Ms. Anderson," he addressed to Jill. "Having recorded the evidence of physical and attempted sexual abuse, would you like to press charges?"

"Press charges?" Jill looked uncertain.

"She will." Lorelai answered firmly.

Jill looked at Lorelai and asked a silent question with her eyes.

"We'll take it to court if it's absolutely necessary," she answered the girl. "It's not going to be fun, but Honey, with everything that Sicko's done to you, the Bastard's got to pay."

"Okay," Jill consented, and the doctor got his answer.

"Fine then. We'll draw up all the necessary paper work and evidence here. Call us if you need anything." He collected his things and left to call the nurse from the Blood Lab.

"Can we just leave now?" Jill begged. "Please?"

Lorelai gently ran her fingers through Jill's hair. "I know you don't want to do this. And I am SO proud of you for what you've handled so far," she paused, "But this is really, really important. If anything is wrong with you, we need to know _now_, so we can fix it."

A slow tear slid down Jill's cheek. "Okay," she whispered.

"And after this, I know a place where we can go and get you LOTS of coffee!"

Jill sniffed. "But we just had coffee."

"And your point is?"

"Oh. Right."

The nurse came in with all of her equipment and she placed a think rubber band around Jill's upper arm to get her all set up.

"Just to warn you," Jill whispered, "This could make me pass out."

"We've got you." The nurse assured her. "Just let me know if you hear ringing, or see black spots."

Lorelai stayed on the other side of Jill and held her hand. Jill was squeezing it so tight, parts of it were turning purple, but Lorelai didn't mind.

"You know," Lorelai leaned in and whispered, "We'll go to Luke's for dinner later, and you'll probably see Jess."

Jess. By the time Jill had registered what she said, the worst part was already over and she looked back surprised to see her blood already flowing into the little tube.

When the tube was full, the nurse quickly withdrew the needle. "Scooby Doo, or Pooh?" she asked, holding up the band aids.

"Ummm, I've always been more of a Pooh person," Jill decided.

"_Who's the friendliest bear in town?_" Lorelai sang. "_POOH! That's who_!"

"Oh my God, that jingle must have come from the early 90's!" Jill reminisced.

"Come on sweets! You're all done!" Lorelai pulled her up and they proceeded to check out and get the heck out of there.

Once they were back in the car, Jill noticed the street sign pointing back towards Stars Hollow. Lorelai drove right passed it.

"Where are we going?" She looked out the window.

"We are going to get the most prestigious coffee you will ever drink!" Lorelai announced.

"Prestigious coffee?" Jill repeated.

"Yep! And you're going to get to meet my one and only offspring! If you're up for it, that is."

"Rory?" Jill sat for a second and tried to put all the pieces together. "Wait, so we're going to Yale?"

Lorelai grinned. "Yes maam! Are you up for it?"

"Sure." Jill sat up, growing excited. "I've never been to Yale."

"Oh, you'll like it." Lorelai assured her. "There are lots of big pretty buildings, and handsome smart people, and a trash can where my dad proposed to my mom, and the coffee cart. Oh! And a random naked guy."

"Sounds like fun." Jill agreed.

"Then there's the stuff that Rory will love showing you like the statues and the paintings, and the bench where one of the fore founders dropped his cigarette butt. Then she'll take you to the library, where she'll grow giddy at the sight of millions of books."

"Millions of books?" Jill asked, interested.

"Are you a reader too?" Lorelai turned onto the main entrance of the university and looked for a place to park.

"Yeah. I love to read, when I can find the time," Jill confessed.

"Then you and Rory will get along perfectly!" Lorelai spotted a place, and grunted. "Ugh. I hate parallel parking!"

"I can't do it." Jill admitted. "Back when I took Drivers Ed, that was the only thing I couldn't do. My instructor told me that it was okay because in Houston, I would never have to parallel park in my life. He was right."

"And now you're screwed," Lorelai joked.

"Yup!"

After backing up, and scooting forward, and backing up once more, Lorelai mastered the parking spot.

"Genious!" Jill said. "Snaps for Lorelai." She snapped mimicking Reese Witherspoon from Legally Blonde.

"Thank you Elle, but you might want to save the snaps for Harvard!" Lorelai made a face, pointing at the big "YALE" sign.

Jill shrugged. "Ah well, wrong university. Sorry."

"Eh, Yale could use a few snaps."

"And an Elle Woods or two," Jill added, getting out of the car.

"Now THAT would be fun to see." Lorelai got out her cell phone.

"Hey daughter-of-mine! Guess what?" She paused. "The circus called. They decided they needed an extra tightrope walker after all, so I'm off to Barnum's and Bailey's. Take care of Luke for me while I'm gone! Love you sweets! Okay, not really, but I am standing outside the main gates of Yale right now." She paused again. "Yeah, meet me for coffee in ten minutes at 3? I brought someone I want you to meet! Okay Hun, buh-bye." She hung up and put her phone back in her purse. "You ready?"

"Take me to the coffee!" Jill replied.

They walked across the street and headed towards the big pearly gates of Yale.

xXxXx

**A/N: Thanks again to all my fabulous reviewers! In the next chapter, after Jill meets Rory, I PROMISE that the Jess fans will get the Jess-centered chapter that they've been waiting for. There will be lots of action and it will SO be worth it! I know this wasn't the most exciting chapter, but reviews and comments would be a great birthday present**!


	5. The Jess Factor

**A/N: So since I barely got any reviews last time, I felt like people didn't like the story, which was a bit saddening. So, this chapter is EXTRA long and it should make up for it! Jess fans, get excited!**

xXxXx

The Jess Factor

xXxXx

Sitting in a commons area amongst the busy hustle and bustle of Yale students, Jill closed her eyes and smelled her coffee. It smelt strong and pepperminty, just the way she liked it. Luke's coffee was great and all, but she could never deny that she loved her gourmet flavors. The white mocha latte with peppermint was her signature drink. She opened her eyes and looked around. A pinch of sadness nudged at her. She really missed going to school and living the whole college experience.

"She should be here any minute!" Lorelai stated excitedly, just as a pretty girl walked up behind her and placed her hands over her eyes.

"Guess who?" the perky brunette teased.

"Pamela Anderson? I always heard she liked to play these kinky games," Lorelai guessed as she turned around.

"Ooh Dirty!" the younger woman exclaimed. Lorelai let out a squeal as the mother-daughter combo reunited in a big hug. Rory was the first to pull back. "Geez, I've missed you! It's been what, four days and you haven't called me?"

"Well, you haven't called _me_!" Lorelai accused. "Come, sit my offspring!" she requested, not forgetting that Jill was still sitting at the table.

Rory noticed the other girl for the first time, and she smiled, readjusting her shirt.

"Here." Lorelai handed her daughter a large cup of coffee. "Rory, I'd like you to meet Jill. Jill, this is my offspring Rory."

The two girls shook hands. "Hi," Jill started, "It's nice to meet you."

"Likewise." Rory nodded as she made eye contact with her mom.

"Ror, a lot's happened the past, well, day." Lorelai began. "To make a really long nasty story short, Jill comes to us from Houston where her life was pretty much destroyed by Hurricane Rita. She was on her way to locate an uncle in Jersey, when a truck-driver-gone-psycho tried to hurt her. She managed to get away from him, and coincidentally ran straight into the Dragonfly. Psycho-truck-man came after her and attempted to kidnap her at knife point. Luke punched the Bastard, saving the day, and then the cops showed up and dragged unconscious-psycho-truck-man to jail." As she finished she sipped her coffee and looked at the two girls.

Jill had a blank look on her face like she was lost somewhere else. Rory looked horrified.

"Are you serious?" the younger Gilmore finally questioned.

"Yeah Hun." Lorelai patted her leg. "One hundred percent."

"Oh my gosh." Rory stood up. "Oh my gosh!" she repeated again as she started pacing back and forth. "How did I not hear about this sooner? I mean, all of _THIS_ happened in Stars Hollow and I hadn't heard about it yet! Someone could have been hurt. Someone could have been _killed_!"

"Rory, Babe." Lorelai jumped up and pulled her daughter back down to the table. "Freaking out is not the best thing to do right now. Everyone's okay. Everything is fine. Now we just need to talk about what we're going to do."

"Huh?" Jill snapped out of her trance. "What we're going to do?" she repeated.

"Exactly." Lorelai turned and faced the two girls. "Jill, do you still want to try and find your uncle? I mean, if he wants you to stay with him, is that what you want?"

Jill thought for a minute. "Well, to be honest, I don't know what I want to do. After the accident I freaked out and he's the only family I have left, so naturally I thought I would try to find him. However, the fact that he never was around or involved with my family in the first place scares me because I don't know how happy he's going to be to see me."

"Okay." Lorelai rested her chin on her hand as she thought. "How about this…" She proposed a plan. "How would you like to just stay in Stars Hollow? You could stay with us." She motioned to Rory and herself.

"Yeah." Rory nodded. "You could share my room. I'm only there on the weekends anyways. Oh! And you could catch up on your classes!" she piped in. "Take some online courses, or work by correspondence or something. I could help you work that out!"

Lorelai smiled at her overzealous daughter. "And we could find you a job. Stars Hollows always has plenty of job opportunities if Kirk doesn't steal them all," she joked.

Jill couldn't believe what she was hearing. People who she had just met, literally minutes and less than 24 hours before, were offering to share their home and alter their lives for her. She shook her head. "Your generosity never ceases to amaze me, but you're offering too much."

"Not at all." Lorelai shot back at her. She looked at her younger daughter to make sure she really was okay with what they were offering. Rory gave her a look and smiled, relaying a message to her mother that only she could interpret. "It's up to you Kid, but Rory and I would love to have you stay with us for as long as you need to."

Jill bit her lip and hesitated. "Well, maybe for a while." She smiled. "At least until next semester starts up."

"That's just in a few weeks." Rory pointed out.

"I _would_ like to catch up on my schooling." Jill admitted.

"Then it's a done deal!" Lorelai announced. "Okay girlie." She looked at her watch. "It's already a little after four. If we scoot now, by the time we get back we'll have just enough time to change and head to Luke's for dinner!"

"You're leaving me now?" Rory asked with a puppy dog face.

"I'll see you tomorrow for dinner with the Grandparents."

"Oh, that's right!" Rory lit up. "I almost forgot."

"Don't let your Grandmother know that!" Lorelai warned. "OH! One more thing!" she leaned in towards her daughter. "Jess is back," she whispered.

"What? Jess-Jess?" Rory questioned.

"Yep. The James-Dean-Wanna-Be in the flesh!" Lorelai raised her eyebrows.

"For how long?"

"He said 'a while', whatever that means."

"Oh." Rory blinked. "Well…that's great. Maybe he'll stay for good this time."

"Oh wouldn't that be something!" Lorelai pulled her daughter into a hug. "See you tomorrow Sweets!"

"It was really nice to meet you," Jill smiled at Rory.

"Same here! I'll have to give you a tour next time!" Rory shot back.

Taking one last glance at the vivacious life known as college, or Yale to be exact, Jill and Lorelai headed back to the car and started the drive back to Stars Hollow.

xXxXx

"We're baaaack!" Lorelai sang creepily to no one in particular as the front door slammed shut, and the two girls crashed on the couch.

"What is it about driving that gets so monotonous and tiring?" Jill asked, as she fell over and nuzzled her face into the arm rest.

"Beats me Kid. Beats me. But hey, we have dinner at Luke's to look up too! Do you want to go change before you see a certain someone?" Lorelai smirked, and made that "I-know something-you-don't-know!" face again.

"Stop giving me that look!" Jill threw a pillow at her. She missed badly.

"Heh, wow Hun. You really were meant to live here. I haven't seen someone throw that bad since Rory and I participated in the Stars Hollow Softball Challenge of 99'. Never again." She shook her head.

Jill got up from the couch and headed to Rory's room to change. "I don't know what to wear!" She complained seconds later. "Is it still twenty degrees outside?"

"More like fifteen!" Lorelai yelled back. "But we can so fix this problem!" She went up to her room and brought back a few coordinated pieces. "You like?" She held them up.

"I love," Jill admitted, taking a hold of one of the shirts and holding it up to her curvy frame. "Problem though." She pouted. "My boobs are too big."

"You know, I think I'm having déjà vu where Rory and I had a very similar conversation regarding that shirt. Only this time," Lorelai turned Jill to the side and looked her up and down. "I think you might be right! What size are you Sweets?"

"36 D. It's my blessing, and my curse." Jill picked up another shirt.

"Noooot FAIR!" Lorelai whined. "I would so take your bigger boobs any day!" She looked at Jill's clothes laid out on the bed. "Dang girlie, you're going to freeze if we don't get you some more wintry clothes."

"In Houston, these were my winter clothes," Jill responded, pulling out her favorite jeans and black boots from the night before.

"Okay, you know what this means?" Lorelai wiggled her eyebrows excitedly. "This weekend we get to go shopping!"

"With what money?" Jill asked, holding up her nearly empty wallet.

"Oh, right." Lorelai picked up a notebook and pen off of Rory's desk. "I'll make a note to call around town and see what job opportunities we can snag for you. But as soon as you get your first paycheck, it's shopping time!"

"Sounds like a plan." Jill agreed.

"Okay." Lorelai stepped back. "This tank top, those jeans, your black boots, and my jean jacket from upstairs will work." She turned and hastily ran up to get it.

Jill wasn't sure how she did it, but Lorelai picked well. The tank top she chose was one of Jill's personal favorites. It had a V-cut that complimented Jill's neck line, and it's deep maroon color contrasted well with the gold band of sequins that circled the waist like a belt The bottom and neck line were stitched with cute delicate lace. When Jill saw Lorelai's jacket, it matched her jeans perfectly. "This is great" Jill acknowledged, putting on her hooker boots.

"No Hun, you _look_ great," Lorelai corrected. "Jess is not going to be able to sit still."

Jill smiled at this and threw her hair back into a messy, but stylish ponytail. She let a few wisps slip out and border her face. She looked very bohemian, but in a totally kick ass way.

"Lip gloss?" Lorelai handed the tube to the teen and she added the final touch.

Finally ready to go, the two set out to Luke's, driving this time because of the freezing temperatures. "I'm telling you," Lorelai sniffed, "It's going to snow really soon."

"I hope so." Jill looked out the window. "I haven't seen a good snow since my family's vacation to Colorado last Spring Break." Jill closed her eyes, trying to remember that trip. Memories were very valuable to her now. She was finding it harder and harder to remember things as time passed, and she was scared that if she didn't remind herself of the little things, then she would forget, and lose them entirely.

"We're heeeere!" Lorelai repeated the statement she made earlier as she pulled her keys from the ignition.

"Fond of Poltergeist much?" Jill asked her.

"That would be, 'They're baaaaack!' not 'We're heeeere'," Lorelai corrected.

"Oh yeah." Jill shook her head feeling stupid. "I never watched the movie all the way though. I saw a documentary about how half the cast and crew started getting really sick and experiencing freaky stuff and that was enough for me!"

"Yeah, the little blonde girl actually died before the filming of the third movie was over," Lorelai added.

"See!" The bell jingled as they entered the diner. The place had maybe two or three tables taken. It wasn't too busy. Lorelai grabbed her usual seat at the diner.

Jess was in the corner refilling an older man's coffee. He looked up when he heard the bell and stopped, almost overfilling the coffee and letting it spill onto the table.

"That's enough young man." The older gentleman hinted.

"Huh? Oh! Sorry!" Jess stumbled back and made his way over to the new guests.

"Did you see that?" Lorelai whispered. "You already made him almost spill his coffee!"

"I didn't do that!" Jill whispered back, as a tingly feeling started to grow in the pit of her stomach. "Did I?"

"Sure did Babe." Lorelai winked.

"Can I help you?" Jess asked when he approached the diner.

"I don't know, can you?" Lorelai messed with him.

"_May_ I help you then?" Jess corrected, rolling his eyes.

"You may!" Lorelai exclaimed. "First you can tell me where that handsome diner man is hiding this evening!"

"LUUUKE!" Jess yelled. "LORELAI'S DOWN HERE!"

Lorelai make a face, and flinched at the volume. "Thank you, Jessie."

"Don't ever call me Jessie, Auntie Lorie."

"Point taken" Lorelai sat back. "Uhhh, I'll have the cheeseburger with fries. Extra cheese. No lettuce or any other disgusting condiments."

"I'll have the same." Jill added, "But, I'll take lettuce and mayonnaise, and could you make my fries curly?"

"Sure. You want them seasoned?" Jess quickly scribbled down the orders.

"Yes, please!" Jill smiled at him.

"And to drink?" He looked up.

"Do you really have to ask?" Lorelai asked him astonished.

"Oh, right. That will be right out." He disappeared to the back room as Luke came flying down the stairs.

"Woah! Watch out there Mister. I wouldn't want you to have an accident!" Lorelai pulled him to her, planting a firm kiss on his lips.

"Sorry it took a while." He kissed her again. "We had a plumbing issue upstairs."

"A plumbing issue?"

"You don't want to know."

"Ah, gotcha!" She spun around in her spinney chair.

"That looks fun." Jill tried it.

Jess snuck a peak from the back and laughed to himself when he saw the two girls, competing who could spin the fastest.

"Did Jess give you your coffee yet?" Luke walked around to the back of the diner.

"Nope! We're coffee less" Lorelai stopped, growing dizzy.

Luke set out the coffee cups and went to make a fresh pot. "Jill, it's good to see you back," he acknowledged the younger woman.

"Thanks Luke." She stopped spinning as well.

"How long will you be sticking around Stars Hollow?"

At this, Jess stopped his work in the back, and leaned forward to listen.

"Um a while I think," she answered.

Jess smiled. "A while" he understood what that meant.

"Oh okay, good. It will be nice to see you around." He sent Lorelai a look that said "Can we talk?"

Lorelai caught this and nodded. "Uh, hey Babe, Luke and I are going to go upstairs. There's something we need to take care of real quick."

"Wow, you're admitting that out loud?" Jess came out with their orders. He shook his head. "Kids these days!"

Lorelai got up and started to follow Luke up the stairs. "Enjoy you're quickie!" Jess shouted.

"Dirty!" He heard Lorelai squeal from above.

"JESS!"

"Yes, Uncle Luke?"

"Can it!"

Jess smirked and brought over the freshly made coffee to Jill.

"You know, I've had coffee all day?" She filled her cup.

"Sounds like the Gilmore's" He replied.

"I mean, I definitely drink coffee everyday, but today has been some kind of marathon!"

They heard a thud from above and Jess jumped.

"I _SO _don't want to know what that was!"

"Me either!" Jill giggled.

Jess sniffed for a minute and then jumped again. "SHIT!" He ran back to the kitchen, smelling something burning. "I forgot to turn off the burner. I think I just ruined a new pan!"

He went to work trying to save it and Jill looked around. It looked very calm and beautiful outside, and she had the sudden urge to take a walk.

She quietly grabbed her purse and slipped outside. Jess heard the faint ting of the bell, and stuck his head out just in time to see Jill walk off towards the woods. He had a feeling he knew where she was going.

xXxXx

Jill walked past the town square. The gas lights provided a very nice dim glow illuminating just enough to see clearly in the night. She really had no idea where she was going. She just wanted to walk, and see where her gut would take her.

In Houston, Jill would have never walked around alone at night like this. Even on her own street in a fairly upper-class neighborhood she had experienced some pretty scary encounters with gang members and whatnot.

She walked beyond the main streets of Stars Hollow, and was attracted by the faint sound of trickling water. She followed the sound until she came to a bridge covering a small river, out in a clearing of the forest. It was a cute bridge; very quaint, it suited Stars Hollow well.

Jill walked to the middle and sat down, allowing her legs to dangle off the edge. She pulled a small notebook out of her purse. Jill borrowed it from Rory's room, and hoped she wouldn't mind. She pulled the lid off of her pen with her teeth and began to write.

She had needed to write again. She missed not being able to record her thoughts, plans and past actions. For Jill, writing was very therapeutic, and she often just scribbled her thoughts for herself, although she had written some song lyrics and short poems on a few occasions. She was in the middle of recording a memory she had been thinking about, when she smelt the familiar sent of coffee.

"Hope I'm not interrupting anything."

Jill jumped, and turned around to find Jess standing behind her, coffee in hand.

"Hello Dolly."

_Dolly_. Jill smiled, taking in the double meaning of his words.

"Here." Jess continued. "It's frickin' freezing out here. This might warm you up." He handed her the coffee and sat down next to her.

"Thanks." She took it and sipped it.

"So I see you've found the bridge…" Jess put his hand up on the rail. "It's one of my favorite spots."

Jill looked at him. "Yeah. I'm not sure how I got here, but I'm here. It's very peaceful and calming."

"I know." He stared straight ahead, taking in the silence. "So you're not from around here?" He finally questioned, even though he already knew the answer.

"No. Not at all." Jill responded. "I'm from Houston. Texas. Far, far away."

"I know where Houston is." He smirked.

"Of course you do. Sorry." Jill felt stupid.

"So what's a big city girl like you doing all the way up here?"

"Long story."

"I get that." Jess looked at her, not trying to force her to say anything she didn't want to.

"What about you?" Jill asked him. "I heard you just got back to town. What's your story?"

"It's long too." Jess repeated her words. Jill nodded and put the lid back on her pen.

"You like to write?" Jess glanced at the small notebook.

"Yeah. It's a "Me" thing. Sometimes I've just gotta catch up with myself, you know?"

"Yeah. I know." Jess agreed.

"I heard you wrote a book."

"I did."

"So you're a writer?"

"I am."

"Care to share?" Jill leaned back on her hands.

"Not really. I read, I write, and that's me," he concluded.

"Cool." Jill closed the notebook and placed it back in her purse.

Jess leaned back and lied down, staring up at the stars.

"Hurricane." Jill blurted out, with no reasoning.

"Katrina?" Jess asked.

"No, Rita." Jill answered. "Took everything."

"I know." Jess admitted.

"You do?" Jill looked at him.

"Small town gossip travels fast" He explained.

"Then why'd you ask?"

"To hear your side of it. Sometimes Babette and Patty get carried away."

"Ah." Jill lied back on her side, and faced him.

When she didn't say anything, Jess put his hands back behind his head.

"So I guess it's my turn?"

"Only if you want it to be." Jill told him, sipping her coffee.

Jess took a breath. "I've had my share of shit in life. My dad walked out when I was a baby. Said he was going to get diapers and then never came back. My mom never learned how to be a mom and was more wrapped up in her alcohol than she was in being a parent. I grew up in the wrong kind of neighborhoods with the wrong kinds of people. Finally, I ended up here. Ironically, _she_ kicked _me_ out. Luke was good to me. But I wasn't ready to be here. My mind wasn't in the right place. School just didn't seem important." He paused and stared at the stars.

Jill looked at him to continue.

"Then my dad showed up out of the blue and messed things up even worse. By the end of the week I was on a bus to California. That didn't work out, so I eventually ended up in Philly. I crashed there until recently, when I decided Philly just didn't cut it anymore." He finished.

"Why'd you come back?" Jill asked after a while.

"I don't really know," Jess admitted. "Seemed right." He shrugged.

"I get that." Jill said smiling as him. Jess turned on his side and looked back at her.

"You get a lot of things, don't you Dolly?" He looked into her eyes, and for a moment, they both lost track of time.

He leaned in, and Jill followed suit, stopping inches from his face. Their breathing was deep, and erratic. Jess thought he could hear his heart pounding. He placed his hand on her face and lightly caressed her cheek with his thumb, keeping eye contact with her the entire time. He slid his thumb to her lips, and he pulled down gently, parting them. Jill felt a familiar heat appear between her thighs and she held her breath. Jess leaned his head against hers, foreheads touching, and he closed his eyes.

Jill thought he was going to kiss her. There was no denying that she wanted him too. She closed her eyes and waited, hoping-needing to feel the contact.

When he didn't, and seconds had passed, she opened her eyes and pulled back, disappointed and confused. Jess was frantically trying to recollect his thoughts. What _are you doing, Man? Kiss her already!_ His heart screamed at him. _I just met the girl and she hasn't even told me her real name!_ His head fired back.

Trying to avoid awkwardness, Jill sat up. "You want to go for a walk?" She managed to stand up, despite the jelly feeling in her legs.

"Sure." Jess stood up next to her and brushed himself off.

Jill crossed the bridge, stepping onto the other side of the river, and Jess followed. They walked a bit down the bank in silence, but it wasn't awkward. Despite their previous moment, the silence was peaceful and serene.

Without thinking, Jill took Jess' hand. Although it surprised him, he didn't pull back.

"So," he finally broke the silence. "You know you haven't really told me your name yet."

"Neither have you." Jill realized.

"I called you on it first!"

"Ok fine!" She surrendered and took another sip of coffee. "My name's Jill."

"I know," Jess replied, kicking a rock into the river. "I'm Jess."

"I know," Jill smirked at him.

"Hey! Only I can give that look to people!" He protested.

"Whatever you say Horace."

"Horace?" Jess grimaced. "What kind of name is that?"

"Dolly?" Jill reminded him. "Have you ever seen Hello Dolly, the musical? Dolly's uh, costar was Horace Vandergelder." What Jill wanted to say was "Dolly's LOVER was Horace Vandergelder," but she stopped herself.

"Then that's Mr. Vandergelder to you!" Jess shot back.

The two were deeper into the woods, farther than Jess had ever gone before. The river was still at their side, but a few feet off the bank, was another small clearing. Jill led Jess to the open space and they stopped right in front of a huge oak tree.

It was massive in size and reminded Jill of the talking tree in the Disney Pocahontas movie. It wasn't very tall. It seemed to be begging someone to climb it.

"Wow." Jess muttered.

"Yeah, wow." Jill agreed. "Let's climb." She let go of his hand for the first time since she had taken it, and she started to find her method for getting up.

She tried to reach a branch that would put her in the perfect position to pull herself up, but she wasn't tall enough. She jumped, but missed.

Jess laughed at her. "Here, let me help you." He came up from behind her and gently lifted her up, giving her the boost she needed.

Jill liked the way his hands felt around her waist. For a moment the heat between her thighs returned. She was almost sad when he let her go. "Thanks" She scooted over and positioned herself, making room for him to get up.

Once Jess was up, the two explored a little. The tree had a lot of open space and sturdy branches.

"This would have been the perfect tree for a clubhouse," Jill admitted remembering her elementary days.

"Yeah. This is cool. I've never seen it before." Jess admitted.

They had a very pretty view of the river, the surrounding forest, and best of all, the stars.

"I wonder what it looks like in the day." Jill thought aloud.

"We'll have to come back and check it out." Jess suggested.

They sat for a few minutes, enjoying each other's company until finally Jess stirred.

"You know, we should probably get back. I bet your food's long past cold."

Jill jumped. "Oh my gosh I completely forgot! Lorelai is probably wondering where I am!"

"Yeah. Once Luke realizes that you're with me, then they'll really have something to worry about."

"And why is that?" Jill asked, climbing down from the tree.

"I don't know." Jess jumped, nailing his landing. "I guess I haven't always been the best influence."

"Nice landing." Jill took his hand again.

"Thanks." He squeezed it and the two hurried back to the diner.

xXxXx

**A/N: SEE! I promised Jess, and you got pages and pages of Jessie goodness! I hope this makes up for the last chapter; I only got 2 reviews! (But thanks to those two people!) Yall's feedback is really important to me. It helps me know how I'm doing, so if you're happy, please review! I will love you forever! If I get my reviews back up again, I promise the next chapter will bring more juicy Jessie goodness!**


	6. Never Been Kissed

**A/N: I promise I will never give up on this story, so even if I take forever to update (like this time) know that it is eventually coming! Thanks for all of the reviews! Keep them coming, they give me inspiration!So sorry for the long wait! I hope it was well worth it.**

xXxXx

Never Been Kissed

xXxXx

The bell above the door rang and Jess and Jill entered the diner, both out of breath.

"There you are! I wondered what happened to you!" Lorelai addressed Jill with a knowing smile.

"Sorry. I went for a walk. Jess brought coffee…" She trailed off. Jess just nodded and headed towards the kitchen. Luke stopped him.

"You!" He stated, poking Jess in the chest.

"Yes Uncle Luke?" Jess raised his eyebrows and stepped back.

"Just because you came back here, it doesn't mean there aren't still rules! Don't ever leave here without telling someone where you are going. You need to run an errand? Tell me. You want to take a smoke break? Tell me. You want to disappear with a girl and come back all out of breath? TELL ME!"

"Whatever," Jess replied and he turned to Jill. "I'll re-heat your food."

"Thanks." She sat down and he disappeared to the back. Luke watched him go and hesitantly followed.

"Lucy, you've got some splainin' to do!" Lorelai whispered in Jill's ear.

"Later," she promised.

"Uh! You're going to make me wait? No fair!"

"Well, what about you?" Jill changed the subject. "How was that plumbing problem upstairs?"

Lorelai tilted her head, surprised by Jill's boldness. "You're good at this game." She paused. "Do you really want to know?" she asked in a low voice, her eyes sparkling with mischief.

Jill quickly shook her head. "No! That's okay."

Jess came out with the food. "Do you want it here, or to go?"

"Uh, let's make it to-go," Jill decided. It was getting late.

"Okay." Jess placed the food in to-go bags and set them on the diner. "So…I'll see you later then?"

"Yeah." Jill smiled at him. "See ya…"

Luke came out from eavesdropping in the kitchen and approached his fiancé. "I guess I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Maybe." Lorelai pulled him to her and kissed him swiftly.

"Maybe?" Luke kissed her back.

"You going to convince me to come back?" Lorelai asked suggestively.

"Oh gross." Jess made a face and turned back towards the kitchen.

Lorelai leaned in to kiss Luke again, when another loud "thud!" came from upstairs.

"Not again!" Luke pulled away and looked up at the ceiling. "See you tomorrow?" he asked again.

"You bet!" Lorelai winked at him. Jill opened the door and Lorelai followed her out of the diner.

xXxXx

"So was there really was a plumbing problem?" Jill asked once they were in the street.

Lorelai grinned evilly. "Wouldn't you like to know!"

"Mean!"

"So…" Lorelai unlocked the Jeep, "Where were you two earlier?" she asked playfully.

"Uh…we just went for a walk," Jill stated simply.

"And?" Lorelai dug deeper.

"And nothing." Jill slipped in the car.

"Yeah. Right." Lorelai looked at her defiantly.

Jill realized they weren't going anywhere until her story was out. She sighed. "And we ended up in a clearing in the woods."

"Oooh, romantic!"

"Yeah. It was beautiful. Jess even said he had never been there before."

"Uh-huh, sure. I bet that's what he tells all his victims," Lorelai joked. "So what happened there?"

"Nothing." Jill answered honestly.

"Oh come on!" Lorelai took her hands off the steering wheel. "You two were gone for half an hour! Something happened!"

Jill remembered lying next to Jess on the bridge and a wide smile spread across her face.

Lorelai noted the goofy look and pried further. "You've got "Lovey Face"!" she sang. "Did he kiss you?"

The happy memory immediately faded away. "No." Jill's smiled dropped in disappointment. "Well, almost," she added.

"Ah ha! I knew something happened!" Lorelai's eyes lit up with interest.

"We were on the bridge just talking. Then, somehow, he ended up really close to me."

"That Sneak! Oh, sorry. Continue!"

"We were sitting millimeters apart and he leaned towards me."

"Uh huh…"

"He put his hand on my face, and I wasn't sure what he was going to do."

Lorelai re-adjusted herself and got comfortable.

"So then he was touching my lips, and he parted them, you know?"

Lorelai raised her eyebrows. "That boy knows how to play his cards."

"Yeah. Well, then… he was there, and our heads were touching, and…I don't know! My heart was doing somersaults and I couldn't breathe."

"That tends to happen," Lorelai assured her. The two were quiet for a moment and then Lorelai looked at Jill hesitantly. "Would you mind if I asked you a really personal question?"

Jill shook her head. "No, go ahead. Shoot."

"Have you…um," Lorelai put her hand to her head and tried to think of the best way to put it. "Are you a virgin?"

Jill was taken back a little bit in surprise. She bit her lip and shook her head. "Um, yeah. I am."

_Thank God._ Lorelai thought, glad to have that out in the open. "Okay," she smiled. "That's good." She paused. "So your heart was doing aerobic exercise..."

Jill laughed. "Yes, my heart was doing aerobic exercise and our lips were probably micro-millimeters from touching. Then he just stayed there. I waited for what seemed like forever, and I thought he was going to kiss me! But he never did, so I pulled back."

Lorelai sighed. "Hrm. I'm sorry kid. That really bites." She looked straight ahead and thought for a moment. "I wouldn't worry about it too much though. I bet that kiss isn't too far down the road. Actually, it's probably a lot closer than you think."

Jill leaned against the window. "I hope so…I think."

Lorelai looked at her. "Why the hesitation?"

Jill squirmed uneasily in her seat. "I'm not sure I'd know what to do," she finally admitted.

"What do you mean?"

"Well. I, uh… I've never really been kissed…like that. For real."

"For real?" Lorelai repeated, definitely confused. "So you mean you've been kissed like, what? Fake?"

Jill half-smiled and looked at her hands. "In high school I was in theatre and I had to kiss guys all the time in shows and stuff, but that was never for real. It was my character kissing their characters, you know?" She looked up. "Then one time there was this weird incident when I accidentally kissed a creepy punk rock guy with a tongue ring, but that's a different story."

"Woah now!" Lorelai jumped forward. "You can't just leave off with a sentence like that and not tell the story!"

Jill shook her head. "Another time."

"Tell me!"

"Another time."

"Tell me!"

"Noooo!" Jill laughed.

"Well how did you know he had a tongue ring unless you kissed him "for real"?"

"He stuck his tongue out at me all the time in Chemistry. We liked to play pranks on each other and mess around in that class."

"So I've heard." Lorelai grinned evilly.

Jill put her hand over her mouth. "That came out wrong."

Lorelai laughed and shook her head. "It's okay I know what you meant. So you've never really been kissed by someone you like, that likes you back?"

"Yeah."

"Okay. That's hard to believe because you're beautiful, but okay." _Geez,_ Lorelai thought to herself, amused, _and here ten seconds ago I thought this girl might be having sex._

Jill crossed her legs and shivered. It was getting colder. "In theatre, it was all staged," she continued. "Like, I was told where to put my hands and how to place my head. It's different."

"That's true. It is different." Lorelai started the car, and turned on the heater. "But in real relationship situations, you don't have to worry about that kind of thing. It just comes naturally. Trust me."

"I don't know." Jill shrugged her shoulders. "Knowing me, I could probably make the most natural thing painstakingly awkward."

"Well, here." Lorelai turned towards her. "Pretend I'm Jess. I'm going to lean towards you like I'm going to kiss you and I want you to let your instincts tell you which way to turn your head."

Jill looked at her uneasily.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to kiss you!" Lorelai assured her.

Lorelai shifted so that she was facing Jill as well as she could considering that they were in a car. She started to lean in, and Jill jumped, hitting her head against the window.

"Ouch!"

"You okay?" Lorelai stopped.

"Sorry! This is weird. Almost too Cruel Intentions for me."

"Oh, good movie! It's okay. I won't go all creepy-Sarah-Michelle-Gellar on you, I promise. You wanna try again?" Lorelai raised her eyebrows, "Trust me. If you close your eyes it will help."

Jill closed her eyes and repositioned herself.

"Follow your instincts and you will be just fine." Lorelai approached Jill again and leaned towards her. When she was about two inches from her lips she tilted her head slightly to the right and stopped.

Jill could sense the closeness of Lorelai's face and she reminded herself to relax and think. _This is Jess, not Lorelai. It's okay, this is JESS. _When Lorelai stopped Jill knew exactly where she was and pictured Jess sitting across from her on the bridge. She thought of how he had been equally as close to her, and where he was in relation to herself. Only this time, Jess leaned forward and….

"That's it!"

Jill jumped and her eyes shot open.

"You tilted your head the right way! See! You've so got this!"

"Huh!" Jill laughed, releasing her pent up nervous energy. "Maybe I do."

"Now just remember to put your hands wherever they feel comfortable; on his chest, around his waist, in his hair…" _Not in naughty places, _Lorelai thought to herself. "Or whatever!"

Jill nodded. "Thanks."

"No problem, Babe. Just don't ask me to help you figure out how to French kiss. You're on your own for that one!"

Jill blushed, clearly embarrassed. "Uh yeah, I think I can take care of that."

"Actually, with a guy like Jess, you won't have to…he'll take care of it himself."

Jill blushed deeper and was thankful that it was night outside. Lorelai finally shifted the car into gear and pulled out of the parking place.

xXxXx

The next morning, Jill woke up to the sound of rain. It was coming down pretty hard, and the darkness outside made it tempting to roll over and go back to sleep. After lying there a few more minutes, she finally sat up and looked out the window.

Jill had always loved the rain. She loved the sound, the smell, and even the feeling of standing outside getting soaked. She remembered back in her theatre days when during rehearsals, if it ever started raining, she and her cast mates would run out side and dance in the rain. They would get up on picnic tables and dance through the parking lot. Then they would come back inside completely drenched, and proceed to go on stage like that. Their director would always yell at them, but no one really cared.

It was funny how the rain still comforted her, when it had been a vital contributor to the loss of her family. Jill shivered and wrapped a blanket around her before making her way to the kitchen. Lorelai was sitting at the table, chewing on the end of her pencil thinking of things to add to her "To-Do" list.

"Morning," Jill sat down.

"Hey Sleepy Head! I wondered when you were going to get up. I have something for you!" Lorelai reached under her "To-Do" list and slid another piece of paper across the table.

Jill caught it and picked it up. "What's this?"

"It's a list of businesses around Stars Hollow that always need seasonal help. Rory needs work every now and then during school breaks and these places always have something available."

"Oh. Thanks." Jill scanned the list. "There's a bookstore?"

"I had a feeling you might go for that one! Rory did the same thing."

"Is there a number I should call or something?"

"No need," Lorelai assured her. "Rory always just shows up and starts right off the bat. You can start today!"

"Wow. That's great. Where is it?"

"Across the Square, like everything else in town. You can't miss it."

Jill got up and went to go shower. By the time she had gotten out and changed, the rain had almost come to a complete stop.

"I'm off!" She shouted to Lorelai.

"Okay Hun, have fun. See you when you get back!"

On her way out, Jill made an extra careful attempt to avoid slipping on the porch as the rain had already started to freeze. Her attempt failed when she reached the bottom step and her foot slipped out from under her and she went crashing down onto the ice.

After the searing pain in her rear-end had lightened, she quickly got up and scanned the area. _Good. No one saw me! _She continued her way and managed to make it to the bookstore without another embarrassing tumble.

Soon she was settled behind the front desk, concentrating on her first task, sorting books. That task was quickly forgotten when she picked up a book that looked interesting, and started reading.

She didn't look up when she heard the bell above the door ring.

"Jill?"

She marked her place and looked up.

"Jess! What are you doing here?"

"Uh, it's kind of a bookstore…and I like to read books." He smiled to himself. It was fun messing with her.

"Oh right." She closed her book. "So…can I help you find something?"

"No, not really. I just came to look."

"Oh okay." She stared at him, not sure what to do.

"So how long you been working here?" he asked, picking up a book off the display.

"About twenty minutes," Jill replied placing the book down that she was reading.

"Already slacking on the job?"

"Huh?"

He nodded with his head, "I caught you reading."

"Oh, yeah. I was supposed to be sorting, but I was drawn to the title, so I opened the front page and"

"You were hooked." He finished for her.

"Yep. I was hooked."

"What book is it?' Jess went over to the counter and picked it up. "Science fiction?"

"No, a fantasy. My favorite," Jill admitted.

"Really? Me too." Jess turned the book to the back cover.

"Really?"

"No. I have lots of favorites." He scanned the back summary.

"That makes more sense. I didn't see you as the fantasy-book loving kind of guy."

"Oh? And what kind of guy do you see me as?" Jess looked at her quizzically.

"I don't know."

"You know what? I'll take it."

"Take what?"

"The book." He held it up.

"My book?" Jill raised her eyebrows.

Jess smiled, knowing he could get her going. "Why not? It doesn't have your name on it anywhere, does it? And this is a bookstore, is it not? I am a paying customer, and I want to buy this book!" Jess put it down on the counter. "Ring it up please, Miss."

Jill made a face. "No. The only reason you want it is because you know I want it!" She leaned over the counter and tried to grab the book.

Jess snatched it before she could even get close. "I'm the customer."

"And I saw it first!" Jill reached for it again, but missed.

"Okay, fine. You know what?" Jess got an idea. "I'll make you a deal. You can have the book, if you'll…have lunch with me today."

"What?" Jill drew back, and her heart skipped a beat.

"You heard me. Have lunch with me, and the book is yours." Jess crossed his arms and looked at her.

"Are you asking me on a date?" Jill searched his face to see if he was kidding.

"If that's what you want it to be." Jess was being an ass, but a cute one.

Jill decided to take the plunge. "Well, okay. Say I do?"

"Then it's a date." Jess handed her the book.

"When?" Jill put the book under the counter where no one else could try and claim it.

"When are you off?" Jess looked at the clock on the wall.

"Um, now I guess." It was well past noon and the owner had told Jill she could take lunch whenever she wanted as long as she put the "Be Back Later" sign in the window.

"Then let's go."

Jill grabbed the sign and placed it in the window. "So where are we going?" she asked, pulling the door shut tight.

"You like pie?"

"I always like pie!"

"Okay then. I know the perfect place."

Jill locked the door and turned to follow Jess, trying hard not to slip on the ice again, and trying even harder to stifle the huge smile that was spreading across her face.

xXxXx

**A/N: I am SO sorry for the super long wait! I had to go through college finals, and moving back home (far away) and all that good crap. I'm home now, and in summer school AND working full time, so writing is hard, but I promise I'll update as often as I can. My muse has been nudging at me lately, so maybe I'll update again within the next few days. The next chapter is one people have been waiting for- It's going to be HOT! So please review!**


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